With mainline religious congregations dwindling across America, a scattering of churches is trying to attract new members by creating a different sort of Christian community. They are gathering around craft beer.

Some church groups are brewing it themselves, while others are bring the Holy Mysteries to a taproom. The result is not sloshed congregants; rather, it's an exploratory approach to do church differently.

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? Who can watch the watchmen?"No one is paying attention to your post reports"Why do posters that claim to have me blocked keep sending me pms and responding to my posts? That makes no sense.

I once heard about some ecumenical gathering in here where they served different kinds of alcohol afterwards. Some random guy had walked in and expressed his/her wish to join the Church right away after he/she saw the alcohol.

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But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.Leviticus 19:34

I once heard about some ecumenical gathering in here where they served different kinds of alcohol afterwards. Some random guy had walked in and expressed his/her wish to join the Church right away after he/she saw the alcohol.

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? Who can watch the watchmen?"No one is paying attention to your post reports"Why do posters that claim to have me blocked keep sending me pms and responding to my posts? That makes no sense.

I once heard about some ecumenical gathering in here where they served different kinds of alcohol afterwards. Some random guy had walked in and expressed his/her wish to join the Church right away after he/she saw the alcohol.

The Orthodox would win in such competition.

Well the gathering was organized in an Orthodox church and we've been growing during recent years.

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But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.Leviticus 19:34

That's sad as hell. They should just turn everything into a bar because americans wouldn't bother otherwise.

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Some of my questions might appear patently stupid to those well-versed in Orthodoxy, but I'm brand new, having no background in the faith. Please grant me a great deal of patience and consideration as I learn the basics.

Nice! I once brought up this very idea many years ago to my pastor when I was still a Protestant. Told him I wanted to gather people around and hangout drinking good quality beer and talk about faith related stuff. I was going to call the social event "Jesus & Beer." Should have seen the look on his face lol! It didn't go over too well with him. He retorted that's what bars are for! I said the two can easily be combined, when you have "Jesus and beer," you have a winning combination that everyone will like.

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"If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world."--Mere Christianity

That's sad as hell. They should just turn everything into a bar because americans wouldn't bother otherwise.

Pretty much true. It's funny how Americans will celebrate a Mexican holiday like Cinco de Mayo with no idea what it is, other than an excuse to drink. Don't get me started on Saint Patrick's Day. I'm sure this beer church innovation will wear out after a few hangovers. I can just hear the preacher mentioning Jesus and someone asking if that's the name of a new micro-brewery.

« Last Edit: November 03, 2013, 06:28:00 PM by GabrieltheCelt »

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"The Scots-Irish; Brewed in Scotland, bottled in Ireland, uncorked in America." ~Scots-Irish saying

That's sad as hell. They should just turn everything into a bar because americans wouldn't bother otherwise.

Pretty much true. It's funny how Americanshuman beings will celebrate a Mexicanany holiday like Cinco de Mayo with no idea what it is, other than an excuse to drink. Don't get me started on Saint Patrick's Day. I'm sure this beer church innovation will wear out after a few hangovers. I can just hear the preacher mentioning Jesus and someone asking if that's the name of a new micro-brewery.

They should start one of those churches here in Louisiana- you'd definitely get a following; and for once, the Catholics, the Orthodox and the Baptists would show up for the same thing.

LOL, the Baptists I knew wouldn't. Louisiana is a whole different world.

You've got that right. Generally, it's only the Presbyterians here that tend to avoid alcohol, the Baptists here being less fundamentalist and more generic Congregationalist with the word Baptist stamped on the barn-church roof.

That's sad as hell. They should just turn everything into a bar because americans wouldn't bother otherwise.

Pretty much true. It's funny how Americans will celebrate a Mexican holiday like Cinco de Mayo with no idea what it is, other than an excuse to drink. Don't get me started on Saint Patrick's Day. I'm sure this beer church innovation will wear out after a few hangovers. I can just hear the preacher mentioning Jesus and someone asking if that's the name of a new micro-brewery.

Yeah, Jesus Beer from Hops for Peace Ministries, LLC is pretty good, but that Holy Spirit Hefeweizen that Brother Jim's (he's a deacon at First Baptist, don't you know?) homebrew group is amazing. Truly, a religious experience.

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Happy shall he be, that shall take and dash thy little ones against the rock. Alleluia.

If you will, you can become all flame.Extra caritatem nulla salus.In order to become whole, take the "I" out of "holiness". सर्वभूतहितἌνω σχῶμεν τὰς καρδίας"Those who say religion has nothing to do with politics do not know what religion is." -- Mohandas GandhiY dduw bo'r diolch.

They should start one of those churches here in Louisiana- you'd definitely get a following; and for once, the Catholics, the Orthodox and the Baptists would show up for the same thing.

LOL, the Baptists I knew wouldn't. Louisiana is a whole different world.

You've got that right. Generally, it's only the Presbyterians here that tend to avoid alcohol, the Baptists here being less fundamentalist and more generic Congregationalist with the word Baptist stamped on the barn-church roof.

The Presbys I used to know drank like Episcopalians and acted like Baptists.

That was more in the north-central part of the state, though, so really a different world than down south.

« Last Edit: November 04, 2013, 03:01:13 PM by Agabus »

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Blessed Nazarius practiced the ascetic life. His clothes were tattered. He wore his shoes without removing them for six years.

THE OPINIONS HERE MAY NOT REFLECT THE ACTUAL OR PERCEIVED ORTHODOX CHURCH

If you will, you can become all flame.Extra caritatem nulla salus.In order to become whole, take the "I" out of "holiness". सर्वभूतहितἌνω σχῶμεν τὰς καρδίας"Those who say religion has nothing to do with politics do not know what religion is." -- Mohandas GandhiY dduw bo'r diolch.

I bet none of the Christian hipsters are aware of it though. The Serbian cathedral has a huge bar. The Romanian churches have smaller bars downstairs. The Rom. cathedral thoughts the best money wise as one is sure to always get cheap wine and Jim beam for free after every sunday liturgy.

Nice! I once brought up this very idea many years ago to my pastor when I was still a Protestant. Told him I wanted to gather people around and hangout drinking good quality beer and talk about faith related stuff. I was going to call the social event "Jesus & Beer." Should have seen the look on his face lol! It didn't go over too well with him. He retorted that's what bars are for! I said the two can easily be combined, when you have "Jesus and beer," you have a winning combination that everyone will like.

That's sad as hell. They should just turn everything into a bar because americans wouldn't bother otherwise.

Pretty much true. It's funny how Americans will celebrate a Mexican holiday like Cinco de Mayo with no idea what it is, other than an excuse to drink. Don't get me started on Saint Patrick's Day. I'm sure this beer church innovation will wear out after a few hangovers. I can just hear the preacher mentioning Jesus and someone asking if that's the name of a new micro-brewery.

You assume that the only purpose for drinking beer is to get drunk?

Have y'all forgotten that Jesus's first recorded public miracle was to provide wine for a wedding?

That's sad as hell. They should just turn everything into a bar because americans wouldn't bother otherwise.

Pretty much true. It's funny how Americans will celebrate a Mexican holiday like Cinco de Mayo with no idea what it is, other than an excuse to drink. Don't get me started on Saint Patrick's Day. I'm sure this beer church innovation will wear out after a few hangovers. I can just hear the preacher mentioning Jesus and someone asking if that's the name of a new micro-brewery.

You assume that the only purpose for drinking beer is to get drunk?

Have y'all forgotten that Jesus's first recorded public miracle was to provide wine for a wedding?

First, (Answering another posters comment) I'm not a teetotaler. Second, I said nothing about getting drunk. Third, the 'water into wine' miracle did not happen in a religious setting. It certainly wasn't in a church setting because churches weren't around then.

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"The Scots-Irish; Brewed in Scotland, bottled in Ireland, uncorked in America." ~Scots-Irish saying

Third, the 'water into wine' miracle did not happen in a religious setting. It certainly wasn't in a church setting because churches weren't around then.

It was a wedding where Jesus (and his disciples) and Mary were invited guests, not a gay civil union at the local courthouse. Why attempt to read it in a purely secular way just because it wasn't within the four walls of a synagogue?

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Quote from: Fr Alexander Schmemann

The Gospel is quite clear: both saints and sinners love God. "Religious" people do not love him, and whenever they can, they crucify him.